We are proud to announce that our fantastic Music Department has been shortlisted for the Outstanding School Music Department Award 2026 run by the esteemed Music & Drama Education Awards for the second year running!

Rosemary Scales, Director of Music, was thrilled by the news: “This is a highly prestigious award in the world of music education. We are absolutely delighted to have been shortlisted and it reflects all of the hard work the students and staff put into their music.”

The announcement came in as a specially selected choir of talented singers were performing the new piece of music, ‘The Sacred Place’, commissioned for the opening of Grove Sixth Form Centre and whole school Library. The building was opening by Professor Robert van der Noort, Vice Chancellor of the University of Reading, on Friday 18^th October. Reacting to the fortuitous timing, Head, Matthew Judd, congratulated Rose: “It is as though the universe was listening to your performance in Grove! Never have I known a Music Department, nor Director of, more worthy of this recognition. Well done to you and all of the team.”

The organisers of the Awards, Music & Drama Education, commented “This is a fantastic achievement, and we can’t wait to celebrate your hard work and dedication in shaping the future of Music and Drama education.”

We will have to wait for the award ceremony in February at the Royal National Hotel in London to find out more!

The Music Department at Leighton Park support a huge variety of musical opportunities, from absolute beginners to those with their sights set on the Conservatoires and a musical career. Over 60% of our students learn at least one instrument and our 27 peripatetic music teachers deliver a range of lessons as diverse as the euphonium, the accordion and the harp to the more traditional options of piano and violin. There are performance opportunities during lunchtimes, evenings and al fresco at our annual Music for a Summer’s Evening event as well as biannual international concert tours and musical theatre shows. The team encourage music for all at every level and our Year 7s have instrumental lessons in strings, brass and woodwind as part of their curriculum teaching to give everyone a chance to discover whether or not they might be interested in pursuing music further. Our co-curricular programme delivers over 90 hobbies each week with around 30% of these in the performing arts, including plenty of musical options from orchestra and bassoon ensemble to Rock Band and Chamber Choir, plus many more in between! 

More about Music at LP

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